1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an amusement ride, especially the type of ride where a participant is located within a self-propelled vehicle to enjoy the sensation of speed as the vehicle moves.
2. Description of the Related Art
Two patents are known to exist for self-propelled vehicles which ride on a track and are guided by a fin which extends downward into a central groove within a track. These patents are U.S. Pat. No. 5,551,347 of Leroy H. Gutknecht and U.S. Pat. No. 5,575,218 of Tyrone E. Powell.
The claims of the Gutknecht patent simply refer to a "vehicle" and describe neither such vehicle nor its source of propulsion. The disclosure for that patent, however, indicates that the intent of the invention of that patent was to "construct an amusement ride incorporating a dragster type of vehicle" and that "[a] dragster type of vehicle is an automobile . . . . " The claims and the disclosure of the Powell patent declare that the vehicle is electrically powered, and the disclosure states that "[t]he present invention comprises cars that are accurate representations of real pro-stock drag racers . . . . "
Despite the fact that the Gutknecht patent does not explicitly provide the operator of the amusement ride (as opposed to the participant within the vehicle) with the ability to control the throttle of the vehicle in order to terminate propulsion, it is understood that the actual amusement rides which are based upon the Gutknecht patent do have this feature in a form which can be utilized by the operator in emergency situations; and the Gutknecht patent does assert, "Another objective of the present invention is to construct an amusement ride which can be operated in total safety for the operating human even in the event that the human is not able to operate the vehicle." Similarly, the Powell patent, though not incorporating the potential for the operator to control the throttle, does indicate that "[f]or safety, DC power to the motors can be interrupted by the race controller at any time during a race."
And although the Gutknecht patent neither claims nor discloses a method for returning the vehicle to its starting position on the track, the Powell patent does disclose "a pivot cylinder . . . with a rod passing through a guide bogie" as a "means for rotating the car . . . 180 degrees at each end of the track . . . . "
Both the Gutknecht patent and the Powell patent disclose pneumatic brakes mounted in the track which close to grasp the downward extending fin when it is desired to brake the vehicle. Brakes similar to those of the Gutknecht patent are, furthermore, claimed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,575,218 of Leroy H. Gutknecht.
A number of patents, moreover, have been granted for vehicles (other than "race cars") the brakes for which operate in a manner opposite to the brakes of Gutknecht and Powell. In U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,195,576; 4,221,170; 4,236,454; 4,246,846; and 4,335,658 a brake pad is maintained some distance from a track upon which a vehicle is moving until it is desired to slow or stop the vehicle, when the brake pad is forced against the track (by means of a lever except for the case of U.S. Pat. No. 4,195,576, the invention of which utilizes a hydraulic cylinder for this purpose). And the device of U.S. Pat. No. 4,014,413 has a brake which functions similarly to those of the series of patents discussed earlier within this paragraph; the vehicle (a mining machine) does not, however, travel upon the track but "moves along a path adjacent to . . . [the] anchored rail . . . . "
The System for Halting Runaway Electrically Powered Train in U.S. Pat. No. 3,858,524 of Roy C. Stones provides a braking effect which does not require an individual to operate a control device such as a lever or a hydraulic cylinder. A U-shaped skid block is mounted beneath a train and has brake lining material on its surface. Extending parallel to the track upon which the train rides is a "split skid track." The "split skid track," itself, incorporates two rails which are urged apart from one another by springs. Only in the drawings is it shown that the end of the "split skid track" is pointed or rounded to facilitate entry of the "split skid track" into the U-shaped skid block. Even so, such entry will be accomplished only if the train remains properly aligned upon the track on which the train is running.